What's up guys... so I've been pricing out parts for a possible rebuild of my 22re and the general concensus online is that engnbldr is the place to go for parts. Problem being their website has a message stating "closed due to illness , sorry!" It's been this way since February 20th (last time the site was update). I just tried calling to see if anyone would pick up so I could get a price on a stock 22re head but they must really be closed because there was no answer today. Anybody know if this is a permanent situation?

Well, lets hope it's nothing terminal. In the interim who else is there? I'm actually driving distance from LC Engineering and I hear they make good castings and set up the valves and what not with quality parts, but their prices are quite a bit higher. Are there any other alternatives to engnbldr? I see a compete DNJ head with valves, springs, and cam for 239$ but that seems too good to be true. I assume DNJ uses Chinese parts?

I thought I read that engnbldr supplies DNJ parts but wasn't sure. The thing I read about getting the cheap already built Chinese heads is the valve adjustment clearances can be totally off and you'd need to crank the bolts all the way down to get the right adjustments ... I don't want to purchase something and have to get a valve job done immediately because it's put together with crap parts.

Actually Im not 100% sure I need a head yet, it looks like I've got coolant leak into at least one combustion chamber (#4) from the intake manifold cooling pasaages i.e.: bad intake manifold gasket but from what I've been told it could also be a crack in the head around the EGR coolant port allowing coolant in to the combustion chamber so it's why I'm just loosely shopping for a supplier of a decent head in case the worst case becomes reality. I've compiled parts and all new radiator, thermostat, and water pump it's mid terms this week so I won't be able to tear into it until next week to find out.

Thanks for the suggestions guys!

I just tore the engine down to the block and I've discovered the source of my coolant loss ... cracked head as I feared. The coolant passage between cyl3 and 4 cracked into the combustion chamber on cylinder 4 so now it's time to shop for a new head for real. Good news is the block looks fine and the bore is good and smooth on all cylinders so I should be good once I sort out the top end. I'm sure I could get it fixed at a machine shop but the cam has pitting of the lobes and the valve stem seals were blowing oil into the intake for cyl 1 and 2 so I just wanna start fresh up top.

Just to update this with some realavant information. I contacted Engnbldr by email and Ted responded within 12 hours with a reply saying the oregon operation is shut down due to Tod's mother having health issues which required Tod to move to Arizona to care for her. Ted said without Tod they can't continue the operation in oregon due to lack of skilled labor to do the machine work but that Tod was working on moving the shop to Arizona to continue business there. Seems like a few months out at least, that's what Ted told me anyway. So it's a minor setback but we should be able to get parts from them down the line a bit.

nah, he just said Arizona and i didn't pry further. I'm bummed because they seem like good folks running a solid business so I'd like to throw them my business but at the moment I need a head and rebuild parts sooner than they can get them to me so I'm probably going to get an assembled head from Davez off-road performance outside Sacramento, which is driving distance for me, and then order the DNJ master rebuild kit online which is the same parts Engnbldr sends in their kit as far as I can tell. The Davez off-road performances head is in the same ballpark price as engnbldr and from what I read he sets them up with quality parts and they aren't cheapo castings.

maybe you are talking about that engine swap and re gear thread where that guy wrote a bible about his experience with dave? I saw dave posting in the thread taking full responsibility for the problems. Seems like the customer got fed up with waiting and then caused a load of problems due to impatience and also Dave apparently had a disgruntled employee that didn't do a good job on the diff, that person was apparently fired as a result. I read more reviews on Dave after reading that thread and I didn't find a lot of negative talk most people say they never had a problem with Dave and that that issue with the dudes engine swap and differential were basically due to that rogue employee and dave taking on more than he could chew which he admitted publicly.

The options within my price range are sort of limited ... I don't want to spend 550 or 600$ for a head from LC or Performance 22re and I don't want a 200$ cheap Chinese assembled head either... about 450$ is the sweet spot for my budget ... got any other suggestions within that ball park? I'm open to other options just haven't found them yet. Engnbldr and Davez are the two venders I've found within that budget range.

I could buy a compete DNJ head which is the same casting engnbldr uses but I'm sure the valve work is not the same and I'd be afraid of the clearance for the valve adjustments on the cheap heads as I've heard the bolts have to be cranked almost all the way down to get the peoper valve adjustments due to the thick valve stem retainers that are used on these cheap assembled heads... has anyone used the DNJ assembled heads? Anyone know if they use super thick retainers on them? I see them for about 230$ without a cam so the price is great but as I said previously in this thread it makes you wonder at that price if it's a get what you pay for scenario.

After your comment I dug deeper into google and found some examples of Dave dropping the ball on other orders as well. The complaints weren't aboht quality of work more so that he was taking on more work than he could handle and leaving people hanging. I guess I'll have to call over there and see what the lead time for a new head with valves and cam is. If he has them in stock then I'd just drive over there and buy one, if not then I might reconsider buying from him. Thanks for the heads up.

and wow! Just wow! I don't know how I didn't find all the horror threads about Davez in my initial research but I have discovered even more unhappy threads about how he makes promises he can't keep etc... all of them highlight that he's good at telling people what they want to hear so they go away but he's not so good at doing what he says. I think I'll either hold out on this project until engnbldr gets back on their feet or get a casting from LCE because Daves seems like a nightmare to deal with. One poster actually commented about how they had to explain the difference between a short and long block to dave. :) so yeah thanks again for raising the flag I'll be spending money elsewhere.